WASHINGTON — The former director of human resources at the Federal Emergency Management Agency has pleaded guilty to negotiating a job for himself at the Gallup Organization while he was supervising Gallup's multimillion-dollar contract with FEMA.

Timothy W. Cannon, 63, faces up to five years in prison on the conflict-of-interest charge. Sentencing is scheduled for April 9.

According to federal prosecutors, Gallup was hired for $6 million in August 2008 to administer the BEST Workforce Initiative at FEMA. In December 2008 and January 2009, Cannon requested additional money for the project. Cannon had an employment interview with Gallup in January 2009 and Cannon accepted a job offer while continuing to work on the BEST Workforce Initiative. When Gallup employees raised questions about the arrangement, the firm withdrew the offer.